Zigzag cooler



July Z0, 1937-` BUEHLER, JR

ZIGZAG COOLER Filed July 5l, 1933 llllllll .l

| l l l Leo nBuehlenJn Patented Joly 2o, 1937 PATENT OFFICE ZIGZAG COOLER Leon Buehler, Jr., Waynesboro, Ba., assignor to Frick Company, Waynesboro, Pa., a corporag tion of Pennsylvania Application July 31, 1933, Serial No. 683,078

3 Claims.

' 'This invention relates to `heat exchangers and particularly to that type commonly referred to as the zigzag type, -whereby such an apparatus is provided in which the fluid to be cooled.

5 and the cooled fluid will be in heat exchange relation with each other throughout their entire course of travel therethrough. and a more efficient interchange of heat between the two fluids results, all as will be hereinafter more fully described and claimed.

This invention is an improvement over the construction shown in the patent to G. W. Udell, No. 1,585,802, of May 25, 1926.

I n carrying out the invention to provide heat exchange between the fluid to be cooled and the cooled fluid one or more zigzag coils is placed in a zigzag passage, the coil resting upon and in4 intimate contact vwith the bottom of the passage so that even a small quantity of liquid passing through the device around the coil or coils will submerge the same. Where a plurality or multiplicity of coils is employed, the coils may be arranged in the same Vertical plane or side by side with the limbs of the respective coils adjacent or contiguous to each other.

Referring to the accompanying drawing, which is made a part hereof and on which similar reference characters indicate similar parts,

Figure l is a side elevation of the coil with the enclosing casing shown in section,

Figure 2, a section on line 2--2 of Figure 1,

` and g Figure 3, a section on line 33 of Figure 1.

In the drawing numeral I0 indicates a casing which may and preferably is made of light sheet metal and covered with any suitable insulating material II. The sheet metal casing is strengthened and made rigid by strips I3, I4 and I5 which strips may be made of wood or of metal as found most convenient. The strips are attached to the 'Sheet metal casing by screws or bolts not shown or' in any other suitable way.

Positioned within the casing is a zig-zag vertical coil I6 having its end I1 through which num enters the coil positioned near the bottom of the casing I0 and the end I8 through which fluid leaves the coil mounted preferably in the top of the casing. An inlet I9 for fluid to be run over the coil is positioned also in the upper portion of the casing and an outlet 20 for the same fluid is positioned near the bottom of the casing. A series of inclined partitions 2| is positioned within the casing and these partitions are secured at one end and at their sides to the 5 sides of the casing and extend under the sections of thecoil and as shown are positioned to provide zig-zag troughs for fluid which enters the inlet I9 so that this fluid will travel through the casing in intimate contact with the coils. While only one coil I6 is shown the invention is not limited to a single coil as there may be two or more coils in the same vertical plane with the limbs one above the other or two or more coils side by side with adjacent inclined limbs in the same plane. While in the preferred 10 construction the frame and partitions may be made of wood the invention is not limited to any kind of material as they may be made of steel or other suitable material. A tank 22 is positioned in the bottom of the casing and may 15 be made integral with the main casing if desired. i

In operation a uid is circulated through the coil I6 and another fluid at a different temperature is passed over the outside of the coil, 20 entering through the pipe I9 and passing down over the outside of the coil, traveling along the troughs in contact with the coil until it empties into the tank 22 at the bottom' of the casing and passes out through the pipe 20. The other fluid 25 enters at I'I and preferably passes upward through the coil I6 and out through I8. The invention is not limited, however, to a particular direction in which the fluid is circulated through the coil I6 as it may enter at either of the 30 ends of the coil and pass out through the other end. In either case the two fluids are in intimate heat exchange relation with each other to provide an efficient transfer of heat from one fluid to the other.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in my device without departing from the spirit of the invention and therefore I do not limit myself o to what is shown in the drawing and described in the specification but only as indicated by the appended claims.

Having thus fully described my said invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by 45 Letters Patent, is:

1. A heat exchanger comprising a casing having a zigzag passage therein extending from top to bottom, a zigzag coil in said casing following said passage, the inclined portions of said coil 50 resting upon the bottoms of said inclined passage, the pipe forming said coil being of external diameter almost equal to the internal diameter of said passage whereby a small quantity of liquid in said passage about said coil will substantially submerge said coil, and means for producing a ow of liquid.

2. For a refrigerating system a cooling unit comprising a casing having a zigzag passage therein extending from top to bottom, a zigzag coil in said casing following said passage and provided with inclined portions in contact with similar portions of the walls forming the bottoms of the inclined portions of said passage whereby a small quantity of liquid admitted into the upper end of the passage will substantially submerge the said coil and flow downwardly through said passage.

3. A cooling unit for a refrigerating system comprising a casing having Vwalls defining a zigzag passage extending from top to bottom thereof, one or more zigzag coils in said casing following said passage and provided with inclined portions in contact with the portions of the wall forming the bottoms of the passage whereby a small quantity of liquid admitted into the upper end of the passage will substantially submerge said coils and ow downwardly through said passage.

, LEON BUEHLER, JR. 

